Patents

Patents cover new technological inventions. They allow inventors to protect their idea for up to 20 years by taking action against anyone exploiting it, and to exploit it themselves by assigning or licensing the patent to another business.

The Isle of Man does not have its own register of patents for inventions. However, the United Kingdom patent system applies to the UK and the Isle of Man as a single area, and thus patents registered in the UK Intellectual Property Office are protected under Manx law.

The UK Patents Act 1977 extends to the Isle of Man subject to modifications made by Order in Council. The current Order is the Patents (Isle of Man) Order 2013 (SI 2013/2062).

The duration of patent rights in respect of medicinal and plant protection products may be extended in the European Union by means of 'supplementary protection certificates'. SPCs are protected under Manx law.

If you wish to apply for a patent to cover jurisdictions other than the Isle of Man and the UK, it is necessary either to file patent applications with individual national patent offices, or to make an international application, either under the European Patent Convention for European countries, or under the Patent Co-operation Treaty for countries worldwide.